Chapter 103: The Way of Tea

The food in this Strange Demon Realm consists mostly of grains, fruits, and vegetables. If any demon wishes to consume meat, they must avoid doing so in the presence of other vegetarian demons; although the others would not mind, those who eat meat treat one another as kin, so they naturally practice such discretion.

Knowing that Ye Sansi was hungry, Immortal Peng brought him to his own living quarters.

Upon entering, Ye Sansi found the space similar in size to his own, yet it was richly furnished. There was a wooden shelf filled with books, as well as wooden tables and stools. For such a small room, it was surprisingly well-equipped.

Immortal Peng gestured for Ye Sansi to take a seat, brewed a pot of tea, filled two bowls, and placed them on the table with a smile: "Brother Sansi, please, have some tea."

Ye Sansi laughed. "Immortal Peng, it is no trouble. One can never have too many skills; perhaps this method of tea planting could be used on my Nameless Peak. Imagine, hunting and drinking tea—wouldn't that be wonderful? By the way, what is this 'Tea Dao'? Is it connected to the Immortal Islands?"

Immortal Peng replied, "As for this Tea Dao, saying it is similar to the Immortal Dao has some merit."

"Immortal Peng, what kind of books are these you keep? May I borrow them to study?"

"Hahaha, Brother Sansi, the books on my shelf are all about human tea ceremonies and planting techniques. Whenever I encounter difficulties in cultivating my tea, I flip through them to find the roots of the problem. Over the years, my tea leaves have grown exceptionally well. They are very useful to me, but for you..."

Ye Sansi seemed to grasp something, continuing, "So, we steep this tea in boiling water, allowing the bitterness to dissolve into the liquid..."

Seeing Ye Sansi’s interpretation, Immortal Peng nodded, quite satisfied. He lifted his tea bowl to his lips, took a small sip, and smiled. "Brother Sansi, as you drink this tea, how does it taste? What changes do you perceive?"

"Senior, what do you mean by that?"

Immortal Peng closed his eyes and said slowly, "Tea leaves are the condensation of natural spiritual energy. From the moment they are planted until they mature, they absorb the light of the sun and moon and endure wind and rain. The hardships involved are known only to the tea itself."

Ye Sansi took a sip, savored it carefully, inhaled deeply, and exhaled slowly. He exclaimed, "Truly good tea, full of character. By the way, Immortal Peng, what is this 'tea heart' you speak of?"

"Hahaha, that must be realized through the act of brewing. To brew a pot of good tea, first comes the selection of materials, then the mastery of the heat. Controlling the heat requires patience, meticulousness, and focus. Most importantly, one must have a calm heart. If you are troubled, the tea will be sour; if you are angry, it will be spicy; if your heart is broken, the bitterness of the tea will never turn to sweetness."

"When I first arrived at the village outside the Strange Demon Realm, I drank many bowls of tea that tasted much like this—bitter at first, then sweet upon finer tasting, and lingering in the aftertaste. It is a truly wondrous feeling."

Immortal Peng laughed. "Brother Sansi, you are quite the connoisseur. You have already mastered five parts of the tea’s path. You should have grasped the essence, but the most important part is the heart within the tea. If you can realize that heart, you will be a master of Tea Dao."

"Senior, you flatter me again. I fear the tea I brew would only be sweet, lacking the bitterness, hahaha."

As they conversed and laughed, a knock sounded at the door. Immortal Peng hurried to stand up and said to Ye Sansi, "Brother Sansi, stay seated. I will go see; it must be the food arriving."

Ye Sansi lifted his tea bowl again, took a small sip, and nodded with a smile. "So, the Tea Dao is a form of cultivation. By immersing oneself in it, one can realize the principles of life—how to conduct oneself, how to act, and how to cultivate. Am I right, Senior?"

Immortal Peng opened his eyes and laughed heartily. "Correct, correct! Brother Sansi, you are absolutely right. If this world were a bowl of boiling water and we were all tea leaves, you would surely be the one to rise above the rest, and the tea you brew would certainly have an extraordinary flavor."

Looking at the table, there were twelve dishes, all vegetarian. Radishes and greens predominated, yet they were prepared so appetizingly that Ye Sansi picked up a piece, chewed it, and praised, "Though it is vegetarian, it lacks nothing in flavor. It is truly delicious. I am in for a treat today. Immortal Peng, is this your wife's handiwork?"

Immortal Peng laughed. "Hahaha, Brother Sansi, I never expected that after only one meal several days ago, you would remember my wife's cooking so clearly?"

Indeed, several women entered the room, placed the dishes on the table, and then bowed and retreated. Immortal Peng slowly closed the door, retrieved two jars of wine from beneath the shelf, opened them, replaced the tea bowls with wine bowls, and filled them up. He laughed, "I am so happy to see you again today, Brother Sansi. Why don't you join me for a few more bowls?"

Ye Sansi nodded and smiled. "Certainly, Immortal Peng. With such fine wine and food, I will not stand on ceremony."

"Immortal Peng, you are a great demon of thousands of years, and I am but a mortal junior. How can I overstep? I only called her 'Sister-in-law' because of Taiyi's form of address."

Immortal Peng raised his wine bowl and said to Ye Sansi, "Brother Sansi, from now on, when it is just the two of us, I will call you that, and you must call me 'Big Brother.' In front of others, I will call you 'Young Hero Ye,' and you..."

"Immortal Peng, it is not that I remembered your wife's cooking so well, but that people in this world rarely prepare vegetarian dishes with such excellence. How could I forget such a flavor?"

Hearing this praise, Immortal Peng smiled. "Hahaha, Brother Sansi, you do have a way with words. But you keep calling her 'Sister-in-law,' yet why won't you call me 'Big Brother'? Why still call me 'Senior'?"

Ye Sansi ate his meal, knowing the wine was excellent but mindful not to overindulge. Suddenly, he recalled something and laughed. "Big Brother Peng, it seems you do not trust me."

"Brother Sansi, what do you mean?"

"I am still calling you 'Immortal Peng,' aren't I?" Ye Sansi stood up, raised his wine bowl to toast with Immortal Peng, and said, "Then, Big Brother Peng, I shall drink first." With that, he downed it in one gulp.

Immortal Peng laughed, praised him, and refilled the bowls.

"Hahaha." Seeing Immortal Peng’s earnest expression, Ye Sansi couldn't help but laugh. "Big Brother Peng, why are you so serious? I was only joking. How could you take it to heart? I am well aware of the precautions in the Strange Demon Realm; how could I be so unreasonable?"

"By the way, where is Brother Taiyi?"

Ye Sansi slowly stood up, pushed open the door, and exclaimed, "Look at this beautiful scenery, like a fairyland. But what did you tell me at first? You said the Strange Demon Realm was built beneath the village, a hollow dwelling dug into the earth. Now that I have arrived, I realize what you told me before was all to deceive me."

Immortal Peng smiled. "Brother Sansi, sit down and eat. Let me explain. When I first met you, I felt you were a kind and righteous person, but the Great King gave orders that if any outsiders arrived, we were to say the realm was beneath the village to ensure our peace. The King's orders are hard to defy; I did not wish to deceive you, Brother."

"Very well." Immortal Peng stepped out with Ye Sansi and said, "Brother Sansi, come with me. Let us ride the clouds to the front lines and take a look, shall we?"

"You know best where the most marvelous sights are, Big Brother Peng. I shall follow your lead."

"He is doing very well, cultivating on the Square-Inch Immortal Island. Once the crisis in the Strange Demon Realm is resolved, I will return. When I tell him you were asking after him, he will surely be happy."

Immortal Peng nodded and downed his bowl of wine. Ye Sansi accompanied him. After three bowls, they were both satisfied. Ye Sansi waved his hand. "Big Brother Peng, I can eat and drink no more. Why don't we go for a walk outside? It will help us digest, and we can enjoy the strange sights of the Strange Demon Realm."

"That array... it has suppressive effects from the front hall to the defensive wall. However, it cannot stop everyone. People like me, the Great King, and other great demons have enough strength to withstand it, so we are unaffected."

Hearing this, Ye Sansi frowned and said softly, "Does that mean if a powerful demon were to attack, the array would be useless?"

Immortal Peng waved his sleeve, and clouds gathered beneath their feet, slowly lifting them into the air. Ye Sansi said in surprise, "Truly amazing! These clouds are so soft, yet they carry us so steadily. It is truly miraculous."

Ye Sansi wondered, "By the way, Big Brother Peng, the senior who brought me here said there is an area in the Strange Demon Realm where magic cannot be used. If we go there, will we have to descend?"

Immortal Peng smiled. "This place is called the Strange Demon Mountains—a name given by the Great King. If you count its position in the world, it is in the far north."

"The far north?"

"One could say so. But Brother Sansi, you need not worry. Our realm has existed for thousands of years; how could we not have countermeasures? The Great King monitors the movements of the village constantly; any slight disturbance is detected. Furthermore, our teleportation spirit stones are hidden underground. The demon enemies can never find them, and even if they did, they could not use them."

"By the way, Big Brother Peng, I was just about to ask: where exactly is this Strange Demon Realm built to be so hidden?"

"It’s just as you are clever, Brother Sansi. But these spirit stones cannot be dismantled. If they were destroyed, it would surely protect our realm from harm."

Ye Sansi seemed to understand and said with a smile, "So the Great King used a magical artifact to connect the Strange Demon Realm with the village, making it convenient to transport benevolent demons here?"

"It is not quite the far north; it should be to the west of the far north, leaning against the edge of the world. I heard the Great King say that he searched for several years before finding this excellent location. It is surrounded by natural hazards. It borders the far north but avoids the extreme cold. With a spell, he made the land grow crops and fruits, bringing joy to the demons and freedom to us."

"Why can't they be destroyed?"

Immortal Peng shook his head and said slowly, "These spirit stones are... they are the Great King's... the Great King's heart. He split his heart into two, turning them into stone statues, allowing demons to pass through. If they were destroyed, the Great King would lose his life..."

"This..."